


hold on, babe (looks like we're jumping in)

by amosanguis



Series: a/b/o AUs [5]
Category: due South
Genre: Alpha Ray Vecchio, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Courtship, Fluff and Humor, M/M, Omega Beton Fraser, Scenting, title from a country song
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-04
Updated: 2016-10-04
Packaged: 2018-08-19 14:23:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,278
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8211680
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/amosanguis/pseuds/amosanguis
Summary: Fraser is the prettiest omega who attracts all the  alphas who try to court him & he's just like "lemme tell you about the courtship rituals of the Inuit." It takes a while but eventually Ray gets the hint.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [reallyyeahokay](https://archiveofourown.org/users/reallyyeahokay/gifts).



> \--for reallyyeahokay because her “tell me more” tweet led to all this  
> \--the author knows nothing about how apartment heating systems work or how to fix them – I’m winging it  
> \--title from “This Can’t Be Good” by Blake Shelton

-z-

 

“Well, a lot of the courtship is the alpha showing they can provide warmth, food, and shelter consistently,” Fraser says to the out-of-breath alpha who has just chased them down to ask Fraser out to dinner.  “The alpha needs to hand-gather wood – the taller the pile the better – for a ceremonial fire they’ll then present to the omega they’re trying to woo.

“If the omega accepts the gift of fire, the alpha then presents seal and caribou meat; it has to be seasoned just right and cooked perfectly – or the gift is ruined and the alpha might lose their chance. The omega takes a bite of each and if they accept the gift of food, too, the alpha will then begin building an igloo.

“When that’s finished, they wait inside for three days – eating only snow. If the omega enters the igloo and stays, then it means they’ve accepted the alpha. They will both then—”

“Wait,” the strange alpha interrupts, “you want me to build you an igloo?”

“Well no,” Fraser scoffs, sharing a Look with Ray as he shakes his head, “you haven’t even shown me you know how to build a fire.” Then he’s turning and walking back towards the car, tugging on Ray’s sleeve. “Come along, Ray, we have a crime scene to get to.”

This happens two more times just _that_ day – once at the crime scene and once as they're standing in line to get coffee. And every time, Fraser tells the ( _intruding_ , Ray thinks bitterly) alpha about the “fascinating, really” courtship ritual of the Inuit.

By the end of the week, Ray has heard the story nine times and it may have been his imagination, but Fraser seemed to be telling it more slowly, more deliberately, looking over at Ray with something like expectation on his face.  Maybe he disliked the way Ray just rolled his eyes whenever Fraser started talking; maybe he wanted Ray to be more polite (which wasn’t going to happen); or maybe he wanted Ray to stop these alphas from coming up to him in the first place (which could definitely happen if Fraser just _asked_ him to do something).

Ray finally gets it in the middle of the night when he’s ranting to his refrigerator about how “all these fucking alphas – they’ve got no tact” and “they can’t keep their knot in their pants whenever they get of whiff of Benny on the wind! It’s ridiculous!”

And then he turns and he catches sight of a candle on his counter, something that smells like flowers Franny bought him because it was supposed to be calming or whatever, and his mind jumps from candle to fire to “I'm gonna build Benny his fucking fire.” And after he’s had the thought, he knows – just _knows_ – that there’s no turning back.

Except that he has no idea how to build a fire.

Or hunt seals or caribou.

Or build an igloo.

Then again, he was a city alpha and city alphas had all kinds of ways to provide warmth, food, and shelter. He just had to find some way to do that without ignoring what Fraser had been trying to tell him all week.  And as luck would have it (no really, it was just luck, he had nothing to do with it) Fraser’s heating goes out.

 

-

 

“That should do it,” Ray says, wiping his hands on the old pair of jeans he’d thrown on as soon as Fraser had called him.

“Thank you very much for your assistance, Ray,” Fraser says.  “I can’t believe the solution was as easy as replacing a lost screw.  How did you know what to look for?”

“Oh, don’t worry about that,” Ray answers quickly as he searches for a way to change the topic before the lie comes through in his scent.  “Hey, I’m thinking about cooking tomorrow – want to stop by?”

There’s a glint of something in Fraser’s eyes as he looks up from his heater to Ray.  But his scent doesn’t betray anything and he just smiles and says, “As long as it wouldn’t be a bother.”

“Not at all,” Ray says, suddenly feeling nervous at the way Fraser keeps looking at him.  “Okay, it’s late.  I’ll see you tomorrow morning.”

“Of course,” Fraser says, stepping over to the door and holding it open.  “Good night, Ray.”

“G’night,” Ray calls over his shoulder as he jogs down the stairs.

 

-x-

 

Ray agonizes over what to make for dinner.  Luckily (or not-so-luckily), another of Fraser’s would-be suitors has actually just followed them into the station – her pupils blown wide and her nostrils flaring as she leans in close.

Fraser, of course, seems oblivious as he launches into his lecture about the Inuit courtship rituals.  Ray’s about to snarl at the woman – try to chase her off, but then he notices that, for the first time, Fraser’s story has changed.

He breezes through the first part of the ritual before slowing down at the second part.

“If the omega accepts the gift of fire, the alpha then presents seal and caribou meat,” Fraser says, glancing up at Ray as he puts his hands on the female alpha’s shoulders and pushes her back a few steps and holds her there.  “Well,” he continues, “the meat doesn’t _have_ to be seal and caribou.  It just has to be two different animals.  The meat has to be seasoned just right and cooked to perfection.  The omega takes one bite of each and if they find the gift of food to be acceptable, they’ll finish the meal.  With the alpha.  Together.”

Fraser is still holding Ray’s gaze – and when the female alpha notices, she starts to turn on Ray.  Ray cuts her off with a sharp snarl before brandishing his badge with a flourish.

“You might want to take a look around,” he says, keeping the growl in his voice, gesturing to the numerous uniformed cops who were pointedly watching them.

The woman instantly reels back, embarrassment spiking through her scent.  Ray takes advantage of her sudden loss of footing and puts himself between her and Fraser.

“Get out of here,” Ray snaps, making shooing motions as he starts to crowd her towards the door.  “Go, before I find a reason to arrest you.”

She gives Fraser one last longing look before she quickly bares her teeth at Ray and slinks out of the station.  Ray turns around just in time to catch the smug look on Fraser’s face – the same one he wears whenever he’s successfully manipulated Ray into helping random strangers.

The look is gone quickly enough – replaced by one of mild disapproving.  “There’s no need to be rude, Ray.”

Ray rolls his eyes as he walks back towards Fraser, nudging him back towards the bullpen.  “We can’t all be as polite as you are,” he says, pushing Fraser lightly, his hands on the Mountie’s lower back.

For a split second, Fraser doesn’t move and Ray wonders if he’s overstepped, if since Ray started this whole courting thing he suddenly wasn’t allowed to touch, maybe that had been some rule Fraser hadn’t mentioned yet.  But Fraser merely gives him the barest hint of a smile before he lets Ray move him.

Ray understands then that that was what it was about – Fraser showing Ray that he was _letting_ Ray crowd him and hurry him farther into the station.  And suddenly Ray wants to know exactly how much Fraser is willing to let him get away with – it sends a jolt of arousal straight to his gut.

He stomps on the thought quickly, though, but judging by the smug side-eye Fraser gives him, not quick enough.  Fraser’s pointedly deep inhale just further confirms it.

 

-

 

Ray decides on cheeseburgers with bacon just because Fraser has mentioned multiple times the two meat thing and that he has yet to be impressed by the American cheeseburger.  So Ray’s doing this for America.  He knows his mother would have a fit – no Italian alpha should be cooking _cheeseburger_ to woo a mate when lasagna is clearly called for.

“I’m telling you right now,” Ray says as soon as he opens the door, “there’s no poutine here.”

“That’s probably for the best,” Fraser says wryly.  “I’d hate for you to ruin one of my favorite foods.”

“Yeah, me too,” Ray says, stepping out of the way so Fraser could walk into the apartment. 

A tension is starting to settle in between them – they both knew what was going on, yet neither of them had acknowledged it.  Ray goes back to the kitchen, busies himself with finishing the burgers.  He’s just set the second one onto the plate and is trying to decide whether or not the bacon needed to be separate from the burger patty, when he feels Fraser at his back, hooking his chin over Ray’s shoulder.

“Smells good,” he says, but his voice is low in Ray’s ear and Ray’s body is reacting and there’s no way Fraser doesn’t smell that, too.

“You said two meats, right?” Ray asks, forcing the words off his tongue as he moves the bacon off the patty and onto the side of the plate.  It’s as close to acknowledgement to what they’re doing to each other as Ray can get right now.

There’s a soft rumble in Fraser’s chest and it vibrates between them – it feels soothing; like a wordless approval that makes Ray preen.  He almost asks Fraser about it but decides against it.

Ray picks up their plates and turns into Fraser who doesn’t move.  He stays in too close and it’s not until Ray is completely facing him that he smells Fraser’s own arousal.  Ray almost drops the plates.  But then Fraser is stepping back and his head is tilted just slightly to the side – waiting for Ray to lead them to the table.

Setting the plates down at the table, Ray turns to Fraser and says, “Beef and bacon.  Enjoy.”

“I’m sure I will,” Fraser says as they both sit.

Ray can’t help but watch as Fraser picks up a strip of bacon first and takes a bite, chewing thoughtfully as he makes more pleased noises in the back of his throat.  Then Fraser sets the bacon down and picks up the cheeseburger – he doesn’t waste any time, just takes a large bite.  Ray lets out a laugh when Fraser’s eyebrows jerk up and he looks down at the burger, surprised.

“It’s even better if you put the bacon on the burger,” Ray says.

Fraser smiles at him and nods before he does just that – carefully arranging the bacon on the patty.

 

-

 

“That was very good, Ray,” Fraser says as he leans back, rubs a hand over his stomach.

“I’m glad you enjoyed it, Benny,” Ray says, standing and picking up the empty plates and taking them to the kitchen.  He’s standing at the sink when he hears Fraser come in.  “I really have to build you a house?” he asks before he can stop himself.

Fraser chuckles and Ray turns towards him.  And Fraser is _much_ closer than Ray had thought he was.

“I’m sure you’ll figure something out,” he says, leaning forward – his nose brushing against Ray’s, nostrils flaring as he takes in Ray’s scent.

Fraser himself smells like new snow and fire smoke; when he’s agitated the scent of smoke fills the room and when he’s happy, it’s the scent of snow.  And right now, snow is all Ray can smell.

“I have faith in you, Ray,” he says.

 _That’s stupid_ , Ray thinks to himself.  What he does, though, is push back.  Turns them so that Fraser has his back to the counter and Ray is pressed all along him before he leans in.

The kiss is slow, tentative at first.  But then Ray has his hand on the back of Fraser’s neck and he’s pulling him closer and deepening the kiss.

Then there’s another rumble from deep in Fraser’s chest and Ray breaks the kiss to pull back and look at him.  Fraser must see the question in his eyes because he answers it without Ray having to actually ask.

“I take it you’ve never heard an omega purr,” he says and it’s more of a statement than a question.

“I thought it was a myth,” Ray answers truthfully.  Sure some of the more dramatic romance movies had purring omegas, but movies lied all the time (every time a silencer completely silences a gun on screen, Ray wants to throw something). Ray himself had never heard it or known anyone else who had.

Fraser looks like he wants to say more – but he closes his mouth.  He glances at Ray’s mouth and just as Ray is leaning back in, Fraser’s hand is at his chest.

“I want my shelter,” he says, and that mischievous glint is back in his eyes.

“Fine,” Ray says, stealing one more kiss before he steps back.  “I’ll build you a house.”

(Ray doesn’t see the way Fraser’s lips purse or the way his shoulders drop just the slightest in disappointment.)

 

-x-

 

To Ray’s surprise, the kiss doesn’t change much between them.  The awkwardness from the night before was gone, and the tension between them is the familiar kind that stems from Fraser’s incessant _need_ to help everyone who asks (and those who don’t).

Ray knows he can't actually build Fraser a house or an igloo.  So far, he’s found he has two options: a gingerbread house (pro: edible, con: he can't sit inside/beside it for three days without food and water and not end up going some kind of crazy; also it’s not Christmas time so he’d never be able to find one) or a pillow and blanket fort (pro: this would totally work on Fraser, con: same as before).

Ray beats himself up in circles trying to think of ways to give Fraser a house – but he comes up with nothing.  So he waits – hoping something would come to him.

“There’s no time limit on this, right?” Ray asks as they eat lunch together at his desk.

“No, Ray,” Fraser says in a way that Ray thinks means he’s not telling the whole truth.  But he doesn’t push and instead takes another bite of his sandwich.

 

-

 

Fraser’s scent is still attracting alphas from all around the city – but fewer and fewer are actually approaching him.  It usually takes just a simple glare and a warning growl for most of the alphas to take the hint.

They’re standing at a stoplight when a burly but short alpha walks up to them – his nose in the air and nostrils flaring.  Except that when his eyes land on Fraser, the alpha’s scent instantly sours.

“I hate tall omegas,” he snarls, angry and clearly taking Fraser’s height as a personal offense. 

“Who asked you, buddy?” Ray snaps, feeling anger beginning to seep into his chest.  He starts to take a step forward – but Fraser’s hand is suddenly locked tight around his arm.

“Don’t,” is all he says as he keeps his eyes straight ahead.

And now Ray is concerned – he zeros in on the strengthening scent of smoke coming from Fraser as he turns his back to the other alpha.  The man was already starting to walk away even as he curses at Fraser (snarling about Fraser’s height and his uniform and how it wasn’t an omega’s place to be outside of the home).

“Benny, everything okay?” Ray asks.  But Fraser gives him a minute shake of his head.

They cross the street and head up towards Fraser’s apartment; it’s not until they’ve safely closed the front door that Fraser answers the question.

“There’s a reason I never stayed long in the city before,” Fraser says, his fingers carefully smoothing the material of his hat.

Ray looks up from where Dief was chewing on a toy, asks, “You mean other than every alpha in a 10 mile radius coming after you?”

Fraser just nods and says, “That’s never bothered me, really.  But sometimes, city alphas,” Fraser hesitates, glancing awkwardly up at Ray – but Ray gives him a reassuring nod.  Fraser starts again.  “Sometimes city alphas don’t like omegas who are just fine on their own – and they certainly don’t take kindly to omegas who are bigger and stronger than they are.  An omega they can’t make submit to them is a threat.”

“I’m sorry, Benny,” Ray says, feeling that surge of protective anger.  He didn’t understand. Fraser is _good_ and _beautiful_ and, in Ray’s eyes, his _strength_ is a quality to be proud of – not something that should ever detract from who he is.

And just as Ray is about to tell Fraser all of this, Fraser says, “I know you never looked at me like that.  When we first met – you weren’t dismissive of me, didn’t think I was playing at being an alpha, didn’t try to make me submit – you just accepted me.”

Ray feels his jaw go slack.  Then Fraser is stepping into his space and Ray automatically puts his hands on Fraser’s hips.

“You don’t need to build me a house, Ray,” he says.  “You’ve been my shelter for a long time now.  _You_ , Ray.”

“I’m—oh, _oh_ ,” is all Ray can come up with before he’s closing the distance between them.  This kiss is different from their first – the gentleness is gone, replaced with hunger.

Ray backs them up in the direction of Fraser’s bed, his hands working desperately at Fraser’s stupid tunic.  Fraser pulls back with a chuckle before he bats Ray’s hands away and undoes his own belt and something with the lanyard and then he’s pulling at the buttons; Ray himself hurriedly pulling off his own clothing.

The scent of snow is thick in Ray’s nose and he takes only a brief moment to worry about the neighbors – but he decides Fraser’s done enough for them that they’ll just have to get over it.  That protective feeling is back in his chest and Ray can’t help but surge forward, grabbing Fraser’s face and kissing him long and deep.

Then they’re falling backwards onto the bed.

 

-

 

“I got a question for you, Benny,” Ray says as they’re walking into the station.

“Shoot, Ray.”

“How many more times were going to tell that story before you finally just told me what you wanted?” Ray asks.

“Well I had thought that with your fine skills as a detective that you would have figured it out after the first telling,” Fraser says.  “When you continued to not get the hint, I almost assumed that you weren’t interested.  But then again,” Fraser taps the side of his nose, “your scent told me otherwise.”

Speaking of scents – the way the other alphas and omegas in the station were looking at them, Ray could tell that they knew what had happened the night before.  His and Fraser’s scents had always been a bit mixed up, they spent a lot of hours together – most of which were in the car or at Ray’s desk.  But today, the scents were more intense, more tightly wrapped together, blending to the point Ray almost lost the smell of snow in his own scent.

“So you just wanted to be wooed?” Ray asks.

“Of course,” Fraser says, grinning.  “Who wouldn’t want to be wooed by you, Ray?”

Ray rolls his eyes, pretending he isn’t as affected as he is, pretending he doesn’t feel warmth curling in his chest.  From the look on Fraser’s face – Ray isn’t successful.

Ray figures that’s okay as he settles at his desk, ready for the day so long as Fraser and the scent of snow stayed with him.

 

-z-

 

End.


End file.
